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Health Minister Bent Høie made wrong accusations on the NRK show “Dagsnytt 18” on Thursday night. There he attended a debate on Aftenposten’s disclosures related to the government’s decision to grant quarantine exemptions to foreign workers.
Dagbladet has confronted Høie with his own accusations during the debate, which deals with issues that have been reported to the government.
Claim 1. “Poland, for example, was not a red country at this time, so this was no exception for Poland.”
The entry quarantine for travelers from Poland was introduced from August 15. Therefore, the quarantine exemption for foreign workers also applies to travelers from Poland in the period from August 15 to October 28.
– It refers to the time the exception was introduced, but here I incorrectly remembered. All European countries outside of the Nordic region were red until July 15. Thus, Poland was in the red when the measure was introduced on June 22, but it turned green on July 15. Then there was no obligation to quarantine from Poland to Norway, neither for migrant workers nor for others, Høie responds.
Claim 2. “When the infection situation in Europe changed, the rules also changed.”
It is difficult to determine when the infection situation in Europe changed. But from July 15 to August 22, 13 EU / EEA countries were included in the red list. On August 23, Espen Rostrup Nakstad stated the following to Dagbladet: “Unfortunately, I think we will see a fairly significant increase in infection in many European countries in the coming weeks.” The quarantine exemption for foreign workers was not changed until changes in regulations took effect on October 28.
– Nakstad is right that towards the end of August we could see the trend of an increase in infection in Europe. This also happened, and in the periodic evaluation of the measures that the Norwegian Institute of Public Health and the Norwegian Health Directorate are commissioned by the Ministry, they proposed a tightening as a result towards the end of October. Then the government immediately followed up, Høie responds.
Claim 3. “The softening here, then, is a lot about these jobs, and the outbreaks that have occurred on these industrial platforms have contributed little to the spread of the infection in society.”
Department head Line Vold of the Norwegian Institute of Public Health, on the other hand, says it is unclear how much of the infection in Norway is due to foreign workers.
This is explained by the large dark numbers associated with covid-19 in Norway. The Norwegian Institute of Public Health estimates that only 40 percent of new cases of infection are identified in Norway. Among these, there is a large proportion where there is no information about the presumed site of infection. We have no information on the other 60 percent. Director Camilla Stoltenberg of the National Institute of Public Health stood by Høie when she reported on this at a press conference in Marmorhallen on November 18.
– The statement is extracted from the report of the National Institute of Public Health of November 30. On page 18, it reads: “The experience is that these employees primarily infect co-workers and, to a small extent, the general population of local communities. You infect those with whom you are most closely associated, and for visiting employees, these are often other working travelers, “Høie responds.
– I don’t know enough
The department director, Line Vold, of the National Institute of Public Health, also highlights this part of the latest risk assessment. In addition, it highlights the following sentence: “The risk of contagion from migrant workers to society will depend on a number of factors, including conditions in the workplace, conditions in the home and the extent to which they are part of the community local beyond work. “
– What do we know about the extent to which foreign workers contributed to the second wave of infection?
– We don’t know enough about this. We estimate that there is up to 60 percent of the infection in society that we do not detect and therefore we do not know what proportion of the infection in Norway may be due to labor immigration, Vold tells Dagbladet.
Kjerkol surprised
Health Minister Høie’s counter-debate on “Dagsnytt 18” Thursday night, Labor Party health policy spokesperson Ingvild Kjerkol tells Dagbladet she is shocked.
– I am surprised that the minister is not more humble. The Minister has a duty to provide information to the Storting upon request. I was in an open exchange of words with the Minister both on Wednesday and Thursday at the Storting, Kjerkol tells Dagbladet and continues:
– The Minister also claimed that they have changed the rules in accordance with developments in Europe, but the Minister and the government did not remove the rules that were pressured by the Norwegian industry before October 28.
Think people are cursed
Kjerkol believes that many are cursed.
– Deputy Health Director Espen Rostrup Nakstad warned against import infections and the growth we are now experiencing in air traffic. Johansen warned in a clear voice because his city bears much of the burden. In Oslo, there are people who have lost their jobs permanently and many are laid off, he says and continues:
– I think most people are cursed because the government has been delayed when it comes to sealing for import infections, despite warnings from the National Institute of Public Health and the Norwegian Health Directorate.
SMS disclosures
On Wednesday, Aftenposten introduced SMS correspondence between Knut E. Sunde in Norwegian industry and Secretary of State Anne Grethe Erlandsen at the Ministry of Health and Care Services. The SMS correspondence took place before the government’s decision to grant quarantine exemptions for foreign workers and documents that Norsk Industri lobbied the Ministry of Health and Care Services.
“Hold on tight. Tragic email from Helsedir … tearing his legs apart during all we have done. And what we agree on writing,” Sunde wrote to Erlandsen in one of the text messages.
Aftenposten also documents that the Ministry of Health and Care Services put pressure on the health authorities. As a result, questions have been raised as to whether the Ministry of Health and Care Services was pressured by Norwegian industry, to what extent infection among foreign workers contributed to Norway’s second wave of infection, and to what extent the Ministry of Health and Care Services listened to the professional advice of the health authorities.
Challenges noted
On Thursday night, Høie told Dagbladet that “the exceptional rule has not fueled the second wave of infection”, that “the government has listened to the health authorities” and that they have not been pressured.
When asked by Dagbladet about the extent to which the National Institute of Public Health experiences the recommended quarantine exemption that was granted to foreign employees this summer, Line Vold of the National Institute of Public Health responds as follows:
– We noted that there were infection control issues associated with granting an exemption. The government made its decision after considering financial and infection control considerations.
